On Tuesday, Sweden accused the Russian government of spying through the so-called “ghost fleet,” made up of old Russian oil tankers owned anonymously, through which Moscow seeks to circumvent sanctions imposed at the international level.
Speaking to Swedish TV channel SVT, the commander of the Swedish Navy, Admiral Eva Skog-Hallum, confirmed that Swedish forces are monitoring the movements of these ships linked to Russia, which transport thousands of tons of crude oil through the Baltic Sea daily.
Hasum said that the army has received indications that some of these ships are being used for radio reconnaissance and interception of communications.
“We found antennas that do not belong, for example, to fishing vessels, so it is clear that these movements must often seek targets other than those visible,” he explained.
In this sense, he highlighted that this type of “tricks” exposes the international community to danger and constitutes a problem “both on the security and environmental levels,” although he did not rule out that some of these ships will be used in the context of “hybrid operations” that may transport them to Swedish ports under the pretext Refueling or maintenance.
But he stressed that the Swedish authorities have an “action plan” in case the goal of these raids in Swedish ports involves “demolition work” on these ships.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom confirmed that there is a “broad consensus” in the European Union that the Russian “ghost fleet” represents a “problem.”
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